Balls Mahoney talks ECW early days, Paul Heyman dealings

On a jam-packed edition of The Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling we go from one “Extreme” to another. First we break down the launch of the brand new streaming service (available starting 7/4/15) NWA Classics 24/7 with NWA President, Bruce Tharpe. We then tackle the world of Death-matches with Seth Bowman the man behind the new documentary “10 Years of Carnage” (available on www.highspots.com) and finish off with ECW Icon, Balls Mahoney. Balls breaks down not only his time running through and swinging chairs in the original ECW but what is was like cutting his teeth in legendary Smoky Mountain Wrestling territory.

“I was doing my Abdullah Singh persona and I had been feuding with Abdullah the Butcher and I had lit him on fire and I was wrestling him all over in Puerto Rico and the gimmick was over. Japan was looking at me but I got the opportunity to go work full time in Tennessee. When I got hired, I actually lasted there over a year because most Smokey Mountain runs were about a year. Just like the USWA you did a year and moved on. I did my first TV tapings in June, July and August and I wasn’t living down there, I was actually still working at Reggie’s in Belmar (NJ) as a bouncer full time and even when I was the SMW TV Champ.”

Seeing The Gangstas breakout in Smokey Mountain:

“It was fun. When I was there we were selling out buildings like the old Knoxville Coliseum. I was in a major angle where they killed my cat and the nights of the blow off there were animal rights people freaking out. I’ll never forget this, watching The Gangstas for the first time that night and hearing New Jack cut his promo and I came in the back and said you guys are going to be one of the biggest things in wrestling and if you go to the Northeast, you are going to be over. Even though New Jack and I have had our problems, I guess when you bleed on a guy he can be as close as a wife.”

How did you stand out in the original ECW:

“Now today fans mostly remember the Kelly-Kelly angle I did, but the real fans don’t remember that ECW. When Vince had the opportunity to bring it back, he could have had his own competition. If Paul E had taken control and they signed an agreement to let him run things, ECW would still be going today. It was destroyed; look at Vince and the WCW angle. If you had come to any ECW show when ECW was hot, any house show was better then any Pay Per View that’s on now. For two years I worked Rob Van Dam every night, 45 minuets on some nights. Our thing in ECW was if you couldn’t follow me then get behind me. You didn’t get your spot by kissing ass or by politicking. History doesn’t understand how loyal Paul was and whether you say good things or bad things about Paul E if he called me tomorrow and said I am starting up a company, I’d say I’d be there.”

Paul Heyman knowing how to handle his problems:

“Paul E should have fired me at least two dozen times. In any other company at least seven times I would have been fired, blackballed, blacklisted for some reason or another and that’s just the bad stuff. I’m talking the stuff he actually knew was going on. I’m talking about walking around naked in a drug-induced state. We were in Pittsburgh and I had taken some medication that wasn’t mine and that was given to me to calm me down, I went to Paul E and started complaining about money and cursing him out, all while stark naked and Paul, just said to give me whatever money to get me out of there. Then I couldn’t find my bags and I’m screaming at the top of my lungs to the owner of the company. Did I get fired? No. But at the upcoming pay per view I was supposed to win a belt and that was my punishment because he didn’t put the belt on me.”

Balls also discusses his influences in the wrestling business, Jimmy Snuka, his WWE theme music, presenting to WWE management and more.

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